hey, it's ok (tuesday) 9.4.12

hey, it's ok

...to be a bit disturbed by the fact that a commercial for a drain cleaner feels the need to be sexy. um. what?
...to wish all my iphone apps had a "quiet time" feature like one i found the other day -- it won't notify you between specific hours if you prefer to set it up that way.
...to be kind of obsessed with shows on abc family. i'll leave it at that ;-) (i feel twelve...)
...to spend an entire saturday in loungey clothes and not leave the house
...to not feel bad about doing the right thing, even if it's unpopular.
...to blog, pinterest and tweet while hanging out in a classroom of sleeping children just to stay awake. {yawn}
...to crank up pandora while by yourself at work. mainly because otherwise you find yourself humming the naptime music while driving or in the shower and that is most definitely NOT ok.
...to be itching to decorate the guest rooms. it's about time they started looking a bit more "us".
...to think that it might be a good idea to get a wedding photo or two up in the house. digital is ok, but canvas would be great :-)

please visit amber's blog to link up and read other things you can be ok with!

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 12.13

hey, it's ok


...to eat a meal that resembles a 2 year olds for lunch. because, hello, i'm eating with a not-even-2 year old
...to have absolutely no idea what to get your father for Christmas...every.single.year.
...to not think it's cute when every status/tweet a 'friend' posts is negative and sarcastic and cuts others down.  not attractive for a 35 year old, sorry to tell you. (off to hit the "unfollow" button directly after posting this...)
...to be oh-so-honored that people took time out of their busy holiday schedules to come to our open house last saturday.  it's something i've done every year (except last year...but you all know that story) -- opened up my home on a saturday afternoon and enjoyed everyone's company.  we cooked and cleaned for the latter part of last week, but it was SO.WORTH.IT.  so grateful that God has placed us in this place...with these people...to share His story
...to forget that my new phone has the option to close apps...and so to have approximately 3000 running until i start wondering why the battery is going down so quickly!
...to never know quite what to say when a friend suffers a loss or is going through a hard time :-(
...to love the charlie brown tree my employers got this year.  i'm looking at it right now and it's precious.


visit amber's blog and link up with your own list!

hey, it's ok (tuesday) 11.15

hey, it's ok

...to not put up a post yesterday.  it was going to be another wedding post but i simply do not have the photos uploaded yet.
...to have JUST added to my to-do list: upload wedding photos
...to wish i could show you photos of the cuteness i just captured from baby g.  suffice it to say, she's adorable.
...to be having WAY too much fun with siri on my new iphone
...to be considering putting up a "what i'm wearing" post every week or so BUT
...to then realize that i dress quite casually at least 2 days a week so that would likely be boring for you all
...to feel a sense of accomplishment for getting all my food boards on pinterest organized this morning #dork
...to use hashtags outside of twitter as long as it's not #allthetime #likethis #seewhatididthere
...to be ready to have our crap organized and the house looking GREAT
...to realize that is not going to happen in the next week or two based on our schedules
...to have to be ok with that

please visit this great blog to see the original and link up with your own list of things that are ok!

what i'm loving wednesday (11.9)

i'm loving that i got to spend the weekend with two sweet boys, 4 and 2

(my standard "respecting privacy" explanation for the backs of heads and through mesh photography)


i'm loving that i'm HOME now


i'm loving that my husband joined us for part of the weekend...and i'm loving that he had the kitchen SPOTLESS when i walked in the house last night for the first time in 4 days.

said husband carrying one child into church while walking next to the oldest. p.r.e.c.i.o.u.s.

i'm loving that our team was the winner for most money raised at the hike for the homeless that i wrote about last week.  i'm SUCH a fan of this organization and i'm grateful that they exist to serve the families who desperately need them.


i'm loving our house, as it comes together slowly but surely.  hopefully i can take you guys on a virtual tour of it soon!


i'm loving "friend dates" that i get to have with my amazing girlfriends!


i'm loving that i have an appointment at the apple store tonight to pick up something else i'll soon be loving!


i'm loving that emi was so happy when i got home last night that she snuggled for a full 5 minutes :-)

it seems like a short list this week, but most assuredly, i'm loving my life and the rich blessings my Papa continues to pour out on us!

hey, it's ok (tuesday)

hey, it's ok!

...to be a little creeped out by certain people without being able to pinpoint an actual reason.
...to declare some days pajama days (as long as you're home, that is!)
...to be annoyed that the battery on your iPhone seems to be getting worse and worse. as well as numerous other things.
...to be holding out for the iPhone 5 (or whatever they decide to call it) this fall.
...to once in awhile have a 'ramen noodles for dinner' night, not because you can't afford anything else, but because you actually LIKE ramen noodles. (kimchee is really good with ramen, in case you're wondering...)
...to have laughed until you snorted several times while watching bridesmaids
...to occasionally snort while laughing
...to be really excited about little things like apartment hunting, engagement pictures, and invitation wording

what i'm loving wednesday .4

i'm loving this year's hockey season! our predators are currently playing the #1 team in the league, and holding our own.
i'm loving that we've selected our photographer.  she's amazing, in our price range, and (bonus!) she's actually the very first person i ever met in nashville.  i'll have to tell y'all that story sometime :-)
i'm loving my cell group girls.  such amazing spiritual insight, Godly conversations, and great taste in food (a bunch of sushi, thai, vodka pasta loving fiends!)
i'm loving the child wearing this t-shirt. i won't see him quite as often after this month (more about that later) but i have SO enjoyed these last few months with him.  and plan to babysit as often as they'll let me ;)

i'm loving the instagram app on my phone.  i was late to the party, but it's so fun to play with! (photo evidence below)

i'm loving the message that pastor alyn brought to us on monday night.  such a gentle, balanced perspective on our response as christians to the events of last weekend.  you can download it for free here (it's entitled 'justice is good.  but mercy is better'
(by the way, while you're there if you are in the nashville area or would like to be for memorial day weekend there's a link to a FREE conference as well.  it's called the MORE conference, and all you need to do is register :)  look for the tab at the top of the page)
i'm loving that we'll be having sunny days for the next few at least...seems like RAIN has been here more than anything else and i am ready for a tan!  i mean...a walk...or run...or something.
i'm loving my sweet hubby to be.  sometimes i feel like all of this wedding planning is a dream that i don't want to wake up from.  soooo happy i get to spend the rest of my life with him :)

hey, it's ok (tuesday) .7

visit amber for the original!

hey, it's ok

... to think the folgers commercials are a bit over the top. the latest one shows people drinking out of a ramekin and creamer cup because they can't spend the 2 extra minutes to locate the box marked "mugs" in the kitchen they just moved into.  i mean, really?

... to expect your phone and computer to communicate simply because they are both made by apple.  why is syncing such a nightmare?

... to think the spicy chicken deluxe combo from chick-fil-a is preferable to any other chicken meal EVER.
(but in all fairness, i don't love chicken.  i'm a beef girl)

... to have discovered and fallen in love with pinkberry.  this is not necessarily a good thing!

... to be excited about starting our registries this weekend.

...to not have a CLUE what we're going to register for.  it's overwhelming!

thursday's ten: games

heads up: NEXT week, we're doing things you see as you drive every day. because, folks...i see some STRANGE things on my way to work every day and i cannot WAIT to share them with you. i just have to collect pictures or you'll never believe me. ;)

today, however, i thought i'd share 10 of my favorite games with you. board, video, iphone, etc :)




1. scrabble
this is the first game that anthony and i played together...and it is a game that i remember playing with my grandma a couple of times when i was growing up. i bought him this awesome edition for valentine's day:

and of COURSE there's the portable, hand held version, words with friends for your phone! (iphone and droid at least)

2. pandemic
a strategic cooperative game that is SO.ADDICTIVE.  seriously, if any of you ever come to visit, we will totally make you learn this game.

3. wiifit

i love wiifit.  yes, i know it's not a *fantastic* workout, but it DOES keep me moving in the midst of dark and dreary winter...and i love tracking my weight loss on a consistent basis.  it's a helpful tool...and it's pretty fun!




4. angry birds
love this game on my iphone -- and i know it's availible for droid as well, since everyone in anthony's family has now purchased it! :)

5. mario
the original is awesome, of course.  and these two wii games are pretty darn fun as well!

6. little big planet
anthony has this for his playstation.  i love it!  it's a game where we work together but we're still competing.  he always wins...he is the more experienced gamer...but it's still fun

7. peggle
another playstation game, but it's also available for several phones!

8. rock band
i'm not sure if the musician in me should run away screaming from the rock band games or embrace them, but i gotta say...they are FUN.  my other gift to anthony for valentine's was rock band 3 -- or, the disk of it at least.  we're splitting the cost of the keyboard addition :)

9. life
i was always upset if i didn't get any babies in my car, but other than that i love the game ;)

10. drop 7
this is one i have on my phone (and is also available for droid).  anthony found it and it's fascinating.  i LOVE it and am so addicted to it! basically it's kind of tetris meets sudoku...

(all of the above games can be purchased from amazon.com, itunes, or local retailers :)  the particular edition of scrabble i got for anthony was a barnes and noble exclusive, but it may be hard to find, as the online store no longer has it available.)

so...what games do you enjoy? 

Thursday's Ten: thanksgiving '10

(you should all participate in this one. just sayin')

today i am thankful

- for the table we will gather at with anthony's family.  for them, their hospitality, and their immediate acceptance of me.  and that they asked me to bring something that's traditional in MY family today so i'm bringing green bean casserole and pumpkin pie.  and so incredibly grateful i didn't get a preparatory letter like this one with instructions. (read it.  you'll laugh)

- for the man i love and our time together so far...and for SO.MUCH to look forward to.  for future plans that excite me, for knowing that he loves God more than he loves me...so the balance is alllll gooooood.  and that he's a dork, just like me.

- for emi, who scrunches her face up into "her" chair, who sits on the piano bench more often than i do, who jumps up on the bed to be loved on as soon as i walk in the door, who runs to greet me when i arrive, who sometimes just runs around the house like a crazed animal, who is stingy (but rewarding) with her purrs, who loves to chase a laser light, and who most nights will cuddle with me at bedtime just for a little while.

- for life in the garden, in the herb planters.  and that i've managed to keep a cilantro plant alive for a whole month now.

-  for the fact that i just drove to anthony's apartment with my sunroof open.  on thanksgiving day, people.  it's in the 70s today :D

(and yes, it'll be cold tomorrow.  but i can be thankful for warm weather on thanksgiving!)

- for friends who get me.  and for those who don't, but accept that i'm a little crazy ;-)

- for the spiritual communities that have shaped my faith.  this journey has been a wild ride, for SURE  but i've told many people to buckle up and raise their hands because it's the ultimate thrill ride!

- for the privilege of being called to live this way.  so completely dependent on God for provision and strength that i pretty much live just like this quote:

"But God doesn't call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn't come through"

(Francis Chan)

- for my wii, dvr, laptop and iphone that serve as distractions when i need them, entertainment when i'm lacking, exercise when it's hot/cold/rainy, and connections with those i love. yes, all of them have their downsides, but using them for their intended purpose has been a blessing

- for so many countless things in addition: my dog magnet that has dogs of all shapes, sizes and breeds flocking to me and giving me affection.  for starbucks and my ridiculous collection of travel mugs.  for road trips with friends.  for snuggles on the couch.  for naps.  for worship.  for babies and the privilege of watching them grow.  for the families who have supported me and entrusted me with their most valuable possessions -- their children.  for learning about and beginning to operate more fully in my giftings.  for laughter.  for family.  for so.much.more.

and of course...for all of you.  who come here and read what i have to say, who humble me with the way you respond, who encourage me with your friendship.  i started blogging just for me, and i'm ever surprised and blessed that you hang out with me here in this small corner of the internet. so thankful that our lives (and blogs) have crossed paths.  :)

my experience with updating my iphone (3g) to OS 4.0

did not go exactly as planned.

which was frustrating, because you would think my macbook would communicate with it well.

i tried several times to run the "update" with no luck.

and by no luck i mean it would start a backup and after several hours would still be stuck backing the phone up.

so i did what any sensible girl would do.

i googled.

after reading several sites where people had similar issues, i lighted on an answer that seemed to be the most prevalent.

choosing "restore" instead of "update". according to them, this would automatically update your phone to the newest possible update.

sounded good to me.

i knew it would erase all my stuff, but i had faith in the "restore to backup" option.

so back up the phone i did :)

all in all, the process took about 2.5 hours from start to finish. here were the steps:

backing up my iphone (2 min)

restoring to factory settings (30 - 45 min)

waiting for it to restart (5 min)

freaking out that all my stuff was gone even though i had known it would be (5 - 20 min)

praying that the restore from backup would actually work (8 min)

and finally--with prayer--hitting the option to restore from backup and checking back every 30 seconds to see how close we were to fully backing up (1 excruciating hour)

oh, and then waiting for it to restart from THAT backup (5 min)

and waiting for it to sync, which basically meant putting all my music and stuff back on it (another 30 min)

having a momentary panic attack when i opened my text messages and saw they were blank...but only for a second. then the last one i had received came up, which made me smile--mostly because it was from my honey and said 'love you' :D (5 seconds)

i am happy to report that all is well...and those 2 hours spent doing all that were less stressful (even with my mild freakout) than the several hours (longest stretch being--i believe--approximately 8 hours with little to no movement on the task bar).

so why did i write this all out?

because there's probably other people out there who have run into similar problems and are unsure if this is the right solution.

so if you're not an iphone user, my apologies. will a cute picture of emi help?

Thursday's Ten: i don't get it

this week, in the category of things i don't understand...

1. appetizers for cats. really, fancy feast?

2. twilight teeth. for real, y'all?

3. people freaking out about facebook privacy settings again. most of them i understand, but worrying that your phone number is being published to your friends list? um...you put your phone number up. if you don't want your friends to see it, remove it. easy fix...

4. why no one in tennessee seems to use cages when growing tomatoes. they produce a much sturdier plant than staking them...just sayin'

5. disposable hand towels being marketed for everyday use. i definitely think they can be used in place of paper towels in some situations. but the marketing ploy is basically that your regular hand towels are filthy and this is the solution.

ok, i'm not sure about you, but i'm drying my CLEAN hands on my hand towel...so i don't buy it.

talk about NOT being eco-friendly!

6. little girls who say they deserve to continue on in competition because "we've just been working SO hard for SO long". um, even if you've been working 10 years (your whole life) and are immensely talented, i can point you to some adults who would laugh at that. a lot.

(thank you, america's got talent, for that particular gem)

7. why on earth it's taken me over 24 hours and two restore operations to try to update my iphone to OS.4. omgoodness.

8. why i haven't heard more about hot in cleveland. i mean, it's betty white for crying out loud--and it cracks.me.up.

9. why all the infomercials after midnight seem to be targeted to the older set. i mean, do they really think 60+ year olds are up at 1 or 2 am watching tv?!

10. mashed potatoes from a box. the real deal is the only way to go. end of story.

join me, won't you?

this blog brought to you by (an) appointment...

i walked in with my bag, starbucks double-insulated cup filled with iced coffee in hand.

spoke to the receptionist, handed over my keys

sat in a comfy chair and gave a cursory glance to the magazines splayed out on the table before simply reaching into the bag and pulling out my laptop

smiling as i noticed the girl sitting opposite me was also typing on a macbook.

her drink of choice is perrier water—with lime

trendy girls, we are

and then i begin to wonder:

am i being trendy for the sake of being trendy?

does that girl LIKE perrier water or is she drinking it because of a fancy name

or fancy bubbles

do i really prefer starbucks coffee?

yes, i brewed my own coffee for the iced coffee in the cup, but no one else knows that…

do we as girls REALLY enjoy wearing high heels?

do people sign up for graduate school because it’s the thing to do,

or do they truly have a passion for what they’re studying?

i suppose it’s different for everyone

i love apple products, so yes i have a macbook

(and an iphone)

and while i enjoy a good coffee anywhere

most of my coffee travel mugs come from starbucks

(i like their style, what can i say?)

and while i much prefer flip-flips

or bare feet

i do like that i feel sexy in a cute pair of heels

so there you go

i'm going to assume that the girl across from me also loves apple

and prefers her water “con gaso”

and now i'll stop thinking so deeply

and just wait for my oil change to be over.

...at least i twisted my ankle on sunday...

because our 5K was *awesome*

I left my house at 2pm (race started at 3) because I knew that it would take at least 30 minutes to get there. I live only 15 minutes away, but they had shut down one of our major roads for construction all weekend so the back way I had to take was sure to be jammed full of not-so-happy rerouted people.

Sure enough.

Anthony's aunt texted me while I was still waiting in a line of traffic on said back road, asking if I were there yet. I said no, but probably would be off this particular street within 5 minutes and it should be a short 5 minute drive from there. She said they were 1 stoplight down from the zoo waiting in line to turn in (they were coming the opposite way from me).

It took exactly 5 minutes for me to turn onto the next street (points for me knowing my Nashville traffic!), and not even 5 to get to where I could see the entrance to the zoo. That's where the real fun began.

(don't you love this overpass with the animals painted on? on the other side there's a cheetah stretching up to a bird. very fun.)

I only got pictures from my side of the line, because thankfully it moved really quickly. However, once I got around this corner:

This is what awaited me!

Once I was in, I texted them to see if they had parked. They were STILL IN LINE to turn into the zoo! My side of town for the win!

More waiting ensued...at least it's a pretty little drive up the zoo property to the parking lot...

(this sign always cracks me up a little bit)

I finally parked. There was a MASSIVE amount of people milling around the parking lot (including Gnash, the Nashville Predator's mascot). So I decided to just hang around the top of the lot and wait for Anthony's mom and aunt...because I figured there was NO WAY I would find them in that crowd.
(which I found out later was at least 3000 people strong--and that was just the participants)
I only ran into one other person I knew--a former coworker from when I was teaching. Since we taught together she has had a precious little girl who is now 2, and found out that she had cancer when Olivia was 3 weeks old. She thankfully was declared cancer free last October, and is doing these 5Ks and half-marathons just to show that she's kicked cancer's ass. I love it.

They delayed the start of the race until 3:15 because of the traffic, but eventually we were off!

The route was pretty cool--lots of little trails not open to the public and quite the backyard tour of the zoo! We're members there so I thought I had seen all the animals the zoo houses, but there are several that live off exhibit. I was lucky enough to walk by these tapirs. If I hadn't watched Rachael Ray earlier in the week I wouldn't have known that they were so special, but apparently they're a pretty rare sight.The path was paved at times, rocky at times, and muddy often. Several hills and twists and turns. I can't imagine having run those portions of it!

We got to see the Bengal tigers (who were quite interested in all of us too!) and the other big cats (Lynx and cougars were out) but most of the other animals were either indifferent or holed away somewhere. I didn't stop to take any pictures. Got a couple of drive-by shots, but they definitely show motion:

(lynx)We wanted to beat our last 5K time which was somewhere in the 55-60 minute range. Of course, we all were walking slower that race so we thought it shouldn't be a problem. We decided that somewhere between 45 minutes and 50 minutes would be great. Of course, we decided this when my iPhone app that we were using to time ourselves (we weren't officially timed, so we started about 5 minutes after the timed runners/walkers) turned to 40 minutes. So we were hoping we were within 10 minutes of ending the race!

Mess, Anthony's aunt, got a little burst of energy right at the end and started speedwalking. Anthony's mom and I looked at each other, shrugged, and kept walking at the same pace. She finished 10 seconds ahead of us...we ended the walk at 48:36. Not too shabby for walking the ENTIRE way...and definitely not to shabby for me considering that less than a month before it literally hurt to walk from one place to the next. My back did fine for the entire time, and I even began contemplating running some in the next 5K we do...which will be in 2 weeks!

finished! Anthony's mom on the left, aunt on the right

Mess and me

And then Sunday came.
And in true Lora fashion:
I completely wiped out in the back of our sanctuary after church.
Twisted my ankle.

Not TOO badly, but enough that I'm now wearing an ankle brace for support so that I'll be able to do the next 5K...

but I guess I'll be walking that one too!

(Next 5K: Nashville Predators Fangtastic 5K...February 6...12 days and counting!)